Trap-gun.



No. 898,023. PATENTED SEPT. 8, 1908.

W. J. WHEELER.

TRAP GUN.

APPLICATION FILED NOV. 4, 1907.

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WILLIAM J. WHEELER, OF DULUTH, MINNESOTA.

TRAlD-GUN.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Sept. 8, 1908.

Application filed November 4, 1907. Serial No. 400,503.

T o all whom it may camera:

Be it known that I, WILLIAM J. WVHEELER, a citizen of the United States,residing at Duluth, in the county of St. Louis and State ofMinnesota,.have invented certain iiew and useful Improveinents inTrap-Guns; and I do hereby declare the following` to be a full, clear,and exact description of the invention, such as will enable othersskilled in the artto which it appertains to make and use the saine.

My invention relates to trap guns and has for its object .theimprovement of guns whereof the trigger is intended to be pulled by theaction of the animal .to be shot.

It consists in the construction, coinbination and arrangements of partshereinafter described and claimed.

In the drawings, Figure 1, is a side elevation of one form of inyinvention. Fig. 2 is a horizontal section thereof on the line A-B ofFig. 1. Fig. 3 is a fragmentary side elevation of a modified form of mysaid invention.

In the drawings, 1, is a skeleton frame or stock einbodying a Web 1 anda breech block lb, wliich breech block is reduced as at 1. Said breechblock is centrally apertured for the passage of a longitudinallydirected firing pin 2. The web 1 is apertured for the passage of thelongitudinally directed fii'ing bolt or hammer 3 which hammer also eX-tends loosely through an aperture in the rear end lfi of said stock.Upon said hammer, at a point between said web and said end 1(l of thestock, is Secured a collar 3, and between said collar and the said end1d of the frame is.

mounted upon said liaininer a coiled eXpanding spring 31) adapted inOperation to project said hammer against said firing pin. Forming partof said frame is a forked depending lug le, between the tines of whichis pivoted a quadrantal or bell crank leverl, to the lower end of whichis pivotally connected a forwardly directed hook 5. In the form shown inFig. 1, the upper free end of said trigger is iiotclied as at 411 toengage the nose of the retracted said hammer, and said upper end ofsaid' trigger is, in said form supported by any suitable style ofSpring, as 6, bearing at its opposite end upon said skeleton frame. Saidbreech block is provided in each side near its inner end with recesses 7containing springs 7 from which recesses slots eXtend forwardly to theend of the thicker portion of the breech block. Within said slots and bymeans of the vertically directed pins 8 extending through suitableapertures in the breech block are pivoted longitudinally directedlooking dogs 9, the noses of which extend forwardly beyond the extremeend of said breech block, and the heels of which eX- tend rearwardlyover said springs Ta, which springs tend to force said heels outwardlyand thus operate to force the noses of said dogs inwardly. Said dogs areprovided at their forward ends with inwardly directed teeth, 9a and saiddogs intermediate of` their' pivots and of their forward ends areprovided with inwardly directed toes 91). Mounted on the reduced end ofsaid breech block and between said dogs is a barrel 10 which barrel ispreferably eX- ternally enlarged at its inner end or breech. The bore ofsaid barrel is enlarged at its inner end so as to form the shoulder 105Lagainst which the forward end of the Cartridge shell 11 abuts; and saidbore is further enlarged at its inner end to form the shoulder 10bagainst which the flange of the said Cartridge shell abuts and also forthe purpose of forming a suitable Chamber for the reception of the saidreduced end of said breech block. Tlie opposite sides of said barrel areexternally slotted and recessed to receive the forwardly projecting endsand toes of said dogs, whereby said barrel is held securely against thethicker portion of said breech block and is also prevented fromrotating. To release said barrel from the breech block for loading orshell-extracting purposes, theheels of said dogs are pinched inwardlyagainst their said supporting springs, thus disengaging the teeth andtoes of the dogs from the barrel, after which the barrel may be removedlongitudinally from the breech block. Said barrel is provided at itsforward end with a deformed therein through one or another of which theshank of said hook is directed. To the forked lug of said stock isconnected by a horizontal pivot 13 a standard 14 which in turn ismounted by a swivel connection or vertical pivot 15 on a post 16. Thusthe gun may tilt vertically or swing horizontally.

In Fig. 3, is sho'ii'n a modified form of the trigger in which the notch411 is omitted and a modified form of notch as 41) is formed, whichnotch is adapted to engage the forwardly directed nose of a dog` 17which dog is pivoted at its heel to the frame or stock and is supportedintermediate of its ends by a suitable Spring 18, in which form, eitherthe Spring 6 or the Spring 18 may be omitted, but

pending finger 12, having one or more eyes i not both of them. Said dog17 is provided with an upwardly directed ear 17 a adapted to engage theforward end of the retracted hamrner. Said hook is adapted to engage asuitable bait, as an apple or a piece of ineat (not shown), inattempting to take which the animal will pull the trigger and releasethe hammer which will strike the firing pin and eXplode the cartridge.

What I claim is In a tra gun, the combination of a stock having a greechblock formed thereon said breech block being reduced in diameter at itsforward end and having an a erture formed therein and extendinglongituldinally thereof, said stock having a depending forked lug at itsforward end, a spring operated reci rocating firing bolt mounted in saidstoc a firing pin mounted in said aperture in said breech block inalinernent With said hammer, a bell crank trigger pivoted intermediateof its ends to said stock forward of said firing bolt and extendingrearwardly, a hook pivvotally connected to the lower arm of said leverand extending forwardly through said 2 forked lug, said trigger beingadapted at its upper end in set position to eXtend into the path of saidfiring bolt, a barrel removably Inounted on said breech block, saidbarrel having recesses formed in its sides, spring 3 controlled dogs,pivotally Secured to said breech block and extending forwardly andexternally overlapping the rearward end of said barrel, said dogs havingprojections forrned thereon adapted in Operation to en- 3 gage saidrecesses formed in the sides of said barrel, substantially as described.

In testirnony whereof I hereunto afliX my Signature, in presence of twowitnesses. v

WILLIAM J. WHEELER.

Witnesses:

JAMES T. WATsoN, O. T. CRANDALL.

